williamjm

I think it might have been the first thing I saw Sam Rockwell in and he also gets some good scenes.

I wonder if the archer is meant to be inspired by 'Mad' Jack Churchill who infamously liked to go to battle armed with a longbow, broadsword and bagpipes?

I think Gregor Townsend might often agree with you.

Apparently it was a day for players in their first series taking 7 wickets in an innings to win an unlikely victory. Two great wins there for the Windies and England. Hopefully the Windies can manage to make victories like this more than an occasional occurrence, although they still have plenty of weaknesses they need to address. As ever, it's a shame that there's no deciding test match.

I finished Ian McDonald's latest novel, Hopeland. I think the best way to summarise this is that it is showing how two very different families, each with their own obsession, try to find a way to prosper in a turbulent 21st Century. The Hopelands are trying to build a multinational 'family' where kinship is based on choosing to join the family rather than any biological connection while the Brightbournes are trying to create things that will last for generations. Throughout the book there is a love triangle between members of the two families, I think the actual question of who ends up together is not the interesting part of the book but it does drive most of the plot due to the characters taking inspiration from each other's families. As the book goes on an increasing amount of it is focused on the impact of climate change, particularly on the Arctic and the Pacific Islands, with the Pacific plotline becoming the most compelling part of the story. It is a long book with a lot happening in it, including some occasional fantasy elements, but I thought it did justify the long length. I've now started Adrian Tchaikovsky's House of Open Wounds, the sequel to the excellent City of Last Chances, and this is also very good so far.

I thought the third film was a lot closer to the formula of the first film than the second was. I suspect Robert Patrick wasn't going to be content with just an equal share. To be fair, they probably didn't think they were risking their lives originally, their original plan was to do things without anyone else noticing and when that was no longer possible they were already committed.

I've also seen it pointed out that in several categories the number of ballots required to cast the votes would seem to be larger than the number of ballots recorded as voting. https://bsky.app/profile/mrmaresca.com/post/3kjhbwjmf5a2d

It was the subtitled version.

The most direct route would be the West Coast main line from London Euston to Glasgow. It's also possible to take the East Coast main line from London Kings Cross to Edinburgh and then across to Glasgow. In both cases the scenery is unexceptional for the first 2 or 3 hours but goes through a lot of scenic countryside once you get to the North of England and then southern Scotland. I usually take the East Coast line to go up to Scotland because it's closer to where I live. Train services in the UK are not noted for their reliability, and the train drivers are holding strikes at the moment. I get the impression that the West Coast line has a worse reputation for delays. Flying would definitely be the fastest and cheapest option (although perhaps the price is closer if you have luggage), but you are obviously not seeing as much of the country. Glasgow Airport is pretty close to the convention centre (unlike Glasgow Prestwick which is a long way from Glasgow). For completeness, there is also a sleeper train service from London to Glasgow, but that is more expensive.

I remember buying a book I hadn't heard about called A Game of Thrones partly because it had a cool looking map at the start of it.

Despite the silliness, I am still enjoying the show.

I remember a few years ago there was a poll of the best Star Trek movies and Galaxy Quest came third.

It does sound like Feist might be disappointed with the sales for his new setting and is trying to link it to the more successful Riftwar books, but I think most Riftwar fans had grown tired of that series long before it came to its end.

Bujold usually seems to announce them about a month before they come out so there's not much advance warning. It's been a while since she last published a story so nice to see another one.

I saw on Facebook that the hotel bookings should open on the 22nd January.

I watched The Boy and the Heron which I thought was good. It felt a bit darker and more reflective than most of Miyazaki's films although still with some lighter moments and I think in the end did have a hopeful message. The animation was, of course, gorgeous. Nobody seems to know for sure whether this time it will be Miyazaki's last film (I think it is his third 'final' film), but if it is then not a bad place to end.

I think Rollerball and Death Race 2000 had a bit of this as well. It has been a lot time since I've seen it, I should rewatch it sometime.

That was Operation Fortune : Ruse de Guerre, it was nothing special but I enjoyed it. I think Hugh Grant seems to have decided to use unusual accents whenever he appears in a Guy Ritchie film.

I think it is not YA itself, but a large part of its target audience is likely to be the fans of Bardugo's YA books.

Two match series are annoying, especially since it seems they would probably have plenty of time to play a decider.

Then followed by India losing their last 6 wickets for no runs. Is it a really difficult pitch to bat on? Even at the fast-forward pace of modern Test cricket 23 wickets on the first day is excessive.

I did not remember that, it's been a long time since I saw the early seasons.

Fortunately, the tsunami warnings now seem to have been downgraded so they are not expecting such high waves. However, it's still not clear the full extent of the damage cause by the earthquake. One of the news reports mentioned waves of 40cm being recorded in Korea so there is something but it's not likely to be damaging.

I don't remember exactly when he first appears so you might not have met him yet, but I think Oleg Burov is the main character who could actually be described as decent and honourable.